The pilot of the revolutionary removable barriers is expected to start in York at the beginning of June, 18 months after initial trials were due to take place, in one of the neighbourhoods of the city worst-affected by flooding.

The designers behind the Aquabarriers have already been contacted by flood-hit communities as far afield as Poland, Greece and Louisiana in the United States, the scene of devastation when water swamped New Orleans in 2005.

Inventor Paul Archer-Simms, who was born in York, has spent £500,000 of his own money creating the defence, which has cost a total of £1.2m to develop.

A contract was finalised with York Council last week allowing a three-year pilot of the new technology in the River Street and Clementhorpe area, where 40 properties were swamped by floods in 2000 and another 50 buildings cut off by rising waters.

The use of traditional flood defences to protect the centre of York would cost millions of pounds, and the Environment Agency has confirmed it will be keeping a close check on the Aquabarrier trials to see if the technology provides a viable alternative.

Mr Archer-Simms said: "There has been a great deal of fortitude involved to stick with the project, but it is gratifying to know that we are nearly there and the trials are due to begin soon.

"The barriers are attracting a lot of interest already from across the world, and we do believe they could provide a very useful tool in dealing with flooding in the future.

"We all know about the threats posed by global warming and Yorkshire has obviously been particularly badly hit in recent months.

"Anything that could help protect people's homes and businesses should be fully investigated – and that is what we will be able to do during the trials of the Aquabarrier."

But the deal has not been without problems. Delays are understood to have arisen after property owners voiced concerns about the disruption which would be caused when the barriers are installed near their buildings.

Protracted legal talks have been undertaken between Mr Archer-Simms, York Council and solicitors representing the property owners, although the disputes have now been resolved.

The flood prevention system would see a raised table created at the end of Clementhorpe – similar to a speed bump but with gentler ramps – onto which the temporary interlocking barriers can be fixed if there is the threat of flooding.

The hollow plastic barriers have holes carved into them to allow them to fill with water and increase stability during flooding. Once the flood levels recede, the water simply drains out of the barriers.

The barrier incorporates rubber seals to prevent leakages, and a stand-by temporary pump will also be introduced to deal with any ground water which has built up behind the temporary defences.

York Council has been involved in negotiations with AquaBarrier-Systems Limited since 2001, but preparatory work is due to start in February ready for the trials to begin four months later.

Work has been carried out for the past seven years on the concept of the barriers following the 2000 floods after the Government asked for innovative ideas to help to prevent future disasters.

The Environment Agency has provided a £50,000 grant to help to fund the York trials.

A spokeswoman said: "This removable barrier is an alternative to managing flood risk at Clementhorpe, where permanent defences are not always the solution. We will watch the trial to see if the Aquabarrier provides a viable alternative."

It would have cost £250,000 to install the 50ft flood defences in Clementhorpe, but Aquabarrier-Systems Ltd is providing the barriers free of charge to showcase the effectiveness of the technology. Tadcaster-based Birse CL has also provided its civil engineering work for free.

Coun Andrew Waller, York Council's executive member for neighbourhood services who also sits on the Yorkshire Regional Flood Defence Committee, said: "We have been working with Aquabarrier Limited for a long time now, and given the recent flooding we have seen in York, it is extremely timely that the trials are due to begin."